Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: RO-Sheen on September 14, 2008, 11:12:32 pm
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Before you say 'dump her' I will but I want to get my money first. I clean her windows for £11 every 12 weeks and she now owes me £22.
She owes me for the May clean and July. Her husband left her in June but I have popped notes through her door and sent her emails but she has never responded.
I know she has received the emails because one of her neighbours has told me that she was with her when she opened the email.
I will be over her way next sunday (she lives about 20 miles from me) but if she refuses to pay what should I say?
Although she has split with her husband and she may be short of money she still had the oppertunity to cancel the service before I came back in July and thats what really bugs me.
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i would make a special trip one evening and knock on her door and politely demand your money.... that way she will explain everything and you will have a better understanding of whats going on.... and you may even get your money there and then....
then dump her
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Thats what I was planning on doing next Sunday when I'm over there. I would be very polite to her but if she says that she wasnt going to pay should I mention (politely) that I would have to take her to the small claims court?
I know its only £22 but its the principle. If she had contacted me before and gave me the sob story that her husband had left her and she was broke I might have just written it off but the fact that she is just letting me keep coming back and just ignoring my emails/notes annoy me.
If I did take her to small claims court would I get a Solicitor to write to her first or what is the procedure?
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i think the more experienced guys will help more....
but for my part if the first calling option failed i would write her a very professional looking letter , with a 7 day payment option... then finish it by saying after that your solicitor will be instructed to take proceedings against her... and will inevitably ruin her credit ratings etc etc....... just lay it on .
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when this happens to me i just write the money off,often its not worth the stress trying to get your money out of customers who have no self respect such as this one.
instead of chasing after them for payment, i have an old backpack that i fill with realy poopy dirty water and i give them a free clean instead, and then i just remove them from george and forget about them,they aint worth worrying about,so i dont
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If you think she is giving you a rubber ear, then stop cleaning her windows. Explain politely the cost of traveling 20 miles to chase payment and how that effects your business, and without prompt payment it is not worth your while.
Dont make it cound like you are giving up but let her know that if she wants her windows cleaned again then she must settle her bill before you will give her a booking date.
I have had a couple of customers that have seperated from there spouce or a very unfortunate death in there family, and my thoughts and condolences go out to people in these situations. However you still have to carry on working, and they must still pay there gas, rent, electricity and so forth. Many fortunately aren't a problem, but some do take this different from others and I have have trouble with a minority, similar to your story and ended up dropping them after some calls and failed visits.
hope you get it sorted
gerard :)
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I would write a letter. and explain that payment has not been made and late fees have been added, if payment continues to be late the debt will be passed on to a collection agency. This seems to get them to pay.
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i have exactly the same with a single mum, £5 front only (i do back and fronts in the other six houses in her row)stupidly i let the debt run to £20.00 but when it was at £15 she apologised and said she would definitely pay if i could just carry on cleaning....guess what? its supposed to be every 4 weeks and i stopped cleaning 12 weeks ago.... the windows have remained clean!!! so am i to demand my £20.00 (on principal) from someone who clearly cant/wont pay? she is on the social and was 1 of only 2 customers on my books who are because i have found in the past that payment is a problem at some stage.
i was going to put the dirt back on, ie soap them up and walk away and deduct £5 from the bill until settled.... but dont feel its right.
so basically i got mugged off for £20.00, the funny thing is she now avoids me like the plague and even parked her car across the road last month when she saw my van and ran round the back of her house to get in!!!! which i found highly amusing!!
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I have a similiar customer that owes me £80!!!(well off estate) she avoids me like the plague and Ive left countless reminders. Im going to leave her a letter saying im sending the bailiffs round next time I go.
Is there no way we can force them to pay?
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I have just written off about £300 in bad debt from new customers this year. i used to let it bother me! i can't be bothered with the hassle anymore i just keep moving on and leave them to it. Plenty more decent customers out there
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I agree, I'd just forget it and move on.
All that time spent thinking about it and letting it bother you?
Not worth £20.
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i think the more experienced guys will help more....
but for my part if the first calling option failed i would write her a very professional looking letter , with a 7 day payment option... then finish it by saying after that your solicitor will be instructed to take proceedings against her... and will inevitably ruin her credit ratings etc etc....... just lay it on .
Thats the best way, from a debt collection letter as though its from a debt collection company, only its still under same name and address, just tell her its the debt collection side of your business, and stipulate the terms on it, id say that the letter goes out automatically to non payers after 3 months etc
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I've got to go with squeaky and rugby here. Just forget it.
She's probably got quite enough on her plate just now. She may not be able to pay the rent/mortgage; buy school uniform for her kids and she may be near the end of here heating oil.
She could probably do without you giving here even more grief for a measly £20.
If you like, go round and tell her than you know how difficult things can be when they go wrong. If she can't pay you right now, whenever she can pay will be just fine with you.
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I'm all for sympathy but more often than not she will just move and be lost forever. Get her details so you can find her if need be. I doubt the electric company will be so compassionate after a few months of no payment.
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I'm all for sympathy but more often than not she will just move and be lost forever. Get her details so you can find her if need be. I doubt the electric company will be so compassionate after a few months of no payment.
its £20 not a few hundred ::) is it really worth the hassle?
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what about £80 like me? over the year it probably adds up to a couple of hundred. look after the pennys...
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has any body got a leter thretning bailiff and deat cleters and credt rateing
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I'm in the "forget it and move on" camp...if it's £20 or under.
I really hate people knocking me (and it's the money not the principle) but frankly the number of man hours spent writing letters, phoning etc is better spent either working, canvassing or more importantly with the family.
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what about £80 like me? over the year it probably adds up to a couple of hundred. look after the pennys...
...and give yourself unessecary stress for a few quid! it really ain't worth it
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just write it off
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i get this as well iwas looking to chase them all no matter what but hey they will know the ins and outs beter than us do u think were the only ones they do this with ,,
i think this is where a contract should be signed at the start when you quote stating the terms and conditions once you have there signiture i think it would be easier to chase them as most of us dont use contracts for residential me included do u think it would be worth while doing so i am seriously going to look in to this im sure there was a quote type contract thing on the download page admin help me out please
but when you have 2000 odd exsisting customers that are ok is it fair to ask them now to sign a contract what do u lot think
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I think that if I asked my customers to sign a contract they'd laugh in my face!
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I would write a letter including that if payment is not recieved by the next clean date then you will not clean again untill bill is settled.
Regarding contracts. I do them. People comment that It is very profesional and business like.
It gives me the opertunity to tell custys that I am not in the beer brigade.
If I take anyone on or sell then the exact details of what has to be cleaned, and when the clean is, are documented for them to see. Also included is the price + when an inside clean is due or if the gutters, facia or anything else needs cleaning and when. The custy has a copy and I do. I can then plan my work load accordingly. Custys know where they stand and so do I.
I have picked up a load more work this way.
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Contact
www.pjcds.co.uk
They will offer you a no collection, no fee service.
They charge a commission if they collect and that is well worth it
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Give the girl a break!
How high on the priority list do you think you are when her husband has just left?
Leave a note saying you understand her circumstances have changed, and if she wishes for you to continue to let you know. Put this in with an invoice and see what happens.
If there is no reply, dont call again. More than likely she will reply either cancelling or asking you to continue, but if she dosent pay just write it off.
The last thing she needs now is some aggro from another bloke for £20.
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Give the girl a break!
How high on the priority list do you think you are when her husband has just left?
Leave a note saying you understand her circumstances have changed, and if she wishes for you to continue to let you know. Put this in with an invoice and see what happens.
If there is no reply, dont call again. More than likely she will reply either cancelling or asking you to continue, but if she dosent pay just write it off.
The last thing she needs now is some aggro from another bloke for £20.
Well said William, my thought exactly.
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She might be happy to see the back of the old man.
Everyones assuming her husband has left her crying into her tea. She might be the happiest she's ever been.
Id pop along,knock on the door, when she answers jsut say 'Hi, just collecting for the window cleaning'.
Balls in her court, and youve not had to make any assumptions about her marital state, her state of mind or her mental ability to withstand someone wanting payment for services provided.
Its probably a storm in a tea-cup.
Matt
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replace her with 2 x £10 jobs you arent the first and wont be the last one she does it to wait till you see another window cleaner doing her windows and warn them she will soon run out of good decent guys word soon goes about
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Give the girl a break!
How high on the priority list do you think you are when her husband has just left?
Leave a note saying you understand her circumstances have changed, and if she wishes for you to continue to let you know. Put this in with an invoice and see what happens.
If there is no reply, dont call again. More than likely she will reply either cancelling or asking you to continue, but if she dosent pay just write it off.
The last thing she needs now is some aggro from another bloke for £20.
Give the girl a break?? She has owed me money since May! I think that is a 'break'. I havent been hasseling her at all, All I have done is when I do her neighbours on a 6 weekly basis I put a polite note through her door reminding her that she owes me money and then followed it up with 2 equally polite emails.
I dont think that is aggro in the slightest.
Because she lives so far from me I cant pop over in the evenings (which I would do to my local customers if they havent had a chance to send the cheque) but I will next Sunday as Im practicly passing her door.
Although I have been very polite I am really quite annoyed that she has just ignored my emails/notes and let me continue to come over to reclean.
Oh, And I've met her husband and he really is a prat so I would be very surprised if she was broken hearted ;D
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If she owes you money you are in your right, why should you suffer, knock on one evening, and just ask when she is in, im sure you will get it, or arrange a definite time to go back, ask for a cheque etc
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Yip just write it off, and rotten eggs 6 months later, i think they explode after 7 so be careful.
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I don't have many bad'uns, but I always include in my letter, that I will "register the debt on "The National Window Cleaners debt register", and she may then find it difficult to obtain the services of another window cleaner in future"
Yes, I know there isn't, but they don't, and I find it brings a result with about half of them.
If it don't, then walk away, [and warn the other 'cleaners in the area]
Baldeagle
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Hi Ady hows you not see you for a while hope all is well
what about this let me know if you want a proper copy email me with your details etc
steve
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Give the girl a break!
How high on the priority list do you think you are when her husband has just left?
Leave a note saying you understand her circumstances have changed, and if she wishes for you to continue to let you know. Put this in with an invoice and see what happens.
If there is no reply, dont call again. More than likely she will reply either cancelling or asking you to continue, but if she dosent pay just write it off.
The last thing she needs now is some aggro from another bloke for £20.
Give the girl a break?? She has owed me money since May! I think that is a 'break'. I havent been hasseling her at all, All I have done is when I do her neighbours on a 6 weekly basis I put a polite note through her door reminding her that she owes me money and then followed it up with 2 equally polite emails.
I dont think that is aggro in the slightest.
Because she lives so far from me I cant pop over in the evenings (which I would do to my local customers if they havent had a chance to send the cheque) but I will next Sunday as Im practicly passing her door.
Although I have been very polite I am really quite annoyed that she has just ignored my emails/notes and let me continue to come over to reclean.
Oh, And I've met her husband and he really is a prat so I would be very surprised if she was broken hearted ;D
In future dont bother asking for advice if your going to get upset when it's given.
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I found that collections site helpful thanks! I'm using them for my £80, I'll let you know how it goes.
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If she can afford to run a car, she can affford to pay a debt. Insurance, car tax, repairs etc are all "up front" payments so these are a priority for her and you are well down the pecking order. Hard but true!
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It's only happened to me once. A fiver a few years back, the wife had left the hubby and he said it was her debt.
So i got a bucket of water, put some dirt from the garden in it, mixed it up with some fairy liquid and proceeded to throw it all over his windows.
He never paid me the money but hey i felt good.
Paul
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I don't have many bad'uns, but I always include in my letter, that I will "register the debt on "The National Window Cleaners debt register", and she may then find it difficult to obtain the services of another window cleaner in future"
Yes, I know there isn't, but they don't, and I find it brings a result with about half of them.
If it don't, then walk away, [and warn the other 'cleaners in the area]
Baldeagle
I am guessing the other half are not stupid, personally i WOULD CHANGE THAT SPEECH BEFORE YOU GET IN TROUBLE
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Hi Ady hows you not see you for a while hope all is well
what about this let me know if you want a proper copy email me with your details etc
steve
Hey Steve
How's it goin? I may ask you for a proper copy. Will see how I get on next Sunday first. Im in Banbury every 4 weeks, always look out for you but you must be busy. Hope all is well.
Give the girl a break!
How high on the priority list do you think you are when her husband has just left?
Leave a note saying you understand her circumstances have changed, and if she wishes for you to continue to let you know. Put this in with an invoice and see what happens.
If there is no reply, dont call again. More than likely she will reply either cancelling or asking you to continue, but if she dosent pay just write it off.
The last thing she needs now is some aggro from another bloke for £20.
Give the girl a break?? She has owed me money since May! I think that is a 'break'. I havent been hasseling her at all, All I have done is when I do her neighbours on a 6 weekly basis I put a polite note through her door reminding her that she owes me money and then followed it up with 2 equally polite emails.
I dont think that is aggro in the slightest.
Because she lives so far from me I cant pop over in the evenings (which I would do to my local customers if they havent had a chance to send the cheque) but I will next Sunday as Im practicly passing her door.
Although I have been very polite I am really quite annoyed that she has just ignored my emails/notes and let me continue to come over to reclean.
Oh, And I've met her husband and he really is a prat so I would be very surprised if she was broken hearted ;D
In future dont bother asking for advice if your going to get upset when it's given.
Who's getting upset??????
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writen it off the next time your in town fill a bucket with muddy water and throw it over the front door it wont get your money but it sure feels good dont let em f you dont get mad get even one slag and i mean it done me for£670.00 (15 YEARS AGO A LOT OF MONEY THEN) point blank refused to pay so when he was out i just got his hose pipe and put it through the letterbox and turned it on i would have paid to see the slags face wheN he got in revenge is best served cold ................................
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you may want to change some of the wording on your post ;)
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In trouble with whom, Window washers?
Baldeagle
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just got his hose pipe and put it through the letterbox and turned it on i would have paid to see the slags face wheN he got in revenge is best served cold ................................
ha ha, ill remember that one along with muddy water and my favourite... eggs injected with super glue!!!
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just got his hose pipe and put it through the letterbox and turned it on i would have paid to see the slags face wheN he got in revenge is best served cold ................................
ha ha, ill remember that one along with muddy water and my favourite... eggs injected with super glue!!!
Both of you guys should just walk away, if people get word of that sort of stuff, you might find your service getting harder and harder to sell. Its also illegal to damage someones property like that, even though they may deserve it and could if you are in scotland end up losing your licence.
Some customers are abit of hassell and can at times end up costing us more instead of making any money off them, but the best solution is just to black list them and dont return. Let other window cleaners know about the hassell you had with them as well, just as a courtesy.
Dont let people agravate you, and cheer up, we all get them.
Gerard :)
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2 eggs, into a blender,add some sour milk, blend, pour into a garden pump up sprayer or squirt bottle, go round 1 night late on ,and leave a deposit on the windows!! It won't get your money but it will give you the satisfaction of knowing that she hasn't got the better of you ;)
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wos that you who did that to my cuson
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Ha Ha, These replies are so funny!! I wouldnt ever do anything to the customers windows but it is making me lol.
My favourite is the glue in an egg method! ;D
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wos that you who did that to my cuson
No , it s not my invention, someone on another forum thought it up, I wouldn't have the bottle to do that lol :)
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just got his hose pipe and put it through the letterbox and turned it on i would have paid to see the slags face wheN he got in revenge is best served cold ................................
ha ha, ill remember that one along with muddy water and my favourite... eggs injected with super glue!!!
Both of you guys should just walk away, if people get word of that sort of stuff, you might find your service getting harder and harder to sell. Its also illegal to damage someones property like that, even though they may deserve it and could if you are in scotland end up losing your licence.
Some customers are abit of hassell and can at times end up costing us more instead of making any money off them, but the best solution is just to black list them and dont return. Let other window cleaners know about the hassell you had with them as well, just as a courtesy.
Dont let people agravate you, and cheer up, we all get them.
Gerard :)
Thanks, gerard ;)
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£ 11 for 2 months £22.... waste of energy... let it go its less than an hours work....youve spent more time whinging on your computer....
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I have a similiar customer that owes me £80!!!(well off estate) she avoids me like the plague and Ive left countless reminders. Im going to leave her a letter saying im sending the bailiffs round next time I go.
Is there no way we can force them to pay?
Update: Finally got paid from her after over a year of knocking when I was cleaning next door! She paid me £40 (half of it) and said she had complained and cancelled (which she hadn't) after the first clean. And just didn't bother cancelling "again" and let me keep coming a few more cleans! All the while with a smug look on her face. She even had the nerve to say she preferred her previous window cleaner because he was "nicer"! (I'm a very polite person). Anyway, just shows persistence pays off sometimes!
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To be honest I think you're a bit naive letting her bill run to £80 in the first place. I'm surprised the alarm bells didn't start to ring a little earlier than that ::) ::) ::)
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To be honest I think you're a bit naive letting her bill run to £80 in the first place. I'm surprised the alarm bells didn't start to ring a little earlier than that ::) ::) ::)
Well, yes maybe but it was only about 4 or 5 cleans and she was one of those never-see-you-pay-you-every-few-cleans business women that had had a good track record previously. It just proves you should never put yourself out on a limb for customers though, just in case.
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Don't keep cleaning a customers house if you aren't being paid regularly. Pick a limit of 2 or 3 washes and stick to it. If they owe phone or leave a letter stating that you've temporarily suspended their window cleaning until payment has been received in full. If you let a bad paying customer run up a debt you stand less chance of getting your money owed than if it was just a single wash.
Trust your gut feeling about whinging customers of shady character who you feel will be more trouble than their account is worth.
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Don't keep cleaning a customers house if you aren't being paid regularly. Pick a limit of 2 or 3 washes and stick to it. If they owe phone or leave a letter stating that you've temporarily suspended their window cleaning until payment has been received in full. If you let a bad paying customer run up a debt you stand less chance of getting your money owed than if it was just a single wash.
Trust your gut feeling about whinging customers of shady character who you feel will be more trouble than their account is worth.
Yes, wise words... I have actually always had a policy of not letting people owe me more than £10, but the odd special case customer I have let owe me a few cleans (say if they are usually busy doing long work hours, never see them but are quick, enthusiastic payers when they do see you). I've definitely become more hard in this area though! :)